Jake: SARU didn't think Bulls would win?

06/04/2024 18:35

Jake White hailed the Vodacom Bulls' playoff win on Saturday, but fired shots at SA Rugby about travel logistics related to the Champions Cup quarter-finals.

Embrose Papier and Sebastian de Klerk scored a brace of tries apiece as the Bulls thrashed Lyon 59-19 at Loftus Versfeld to progress to the last eight of the EPCR competition for the first time.

The Pretoria outfit face the winners of the clash between Munster and Northampton Saints on Sunday, with a trip to England for White's charges in the last-eight stage next Saturday should Saints triumph at Franklin's Gardens.

A Qatar Airways partnership to fly the SA franchises between Europe and the Republic for EPCR matches has caused logistical issues for the teams, with the DHL Stormers' delayed flight to the UK last season contributing to a maiden defeat in the quarter-finals.

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Speaking post-match at Loftus on Saturday, White questioned the lack of communication from SA Rugby in the eventuality the Bulls have to board a plane for a crunch duel.

"I'm going to wear red the whole day [on Sunday], especially because I haven't got any arrangements from SA Rugby," the director of rugby told reporters in response to who the Bulls would like to face next week.

"Last time we went to Leinster we had to fly on eight different aeroplanes, and I suppose it's going to be the same… I haven't got any flight details yet, so either they didn't think we were going to win or they waited until the last minute to book those flights.

"It's frustrating, it's really frustrating. I think SA Rugby are probably shouting for Munster [too] because they won't be exposed on flights out of here. Who books a holiday or travel abroad on a Sunday night when you want to leave that week to go to a game with 40 people?

"So ja, Munster because we stay at home, and more importantly, because there's no eight aeroplanes flying with different people around the world to arrive at a different place via different places with different buses and different shuttles picking a team up when you're playing probably our biggest game this year."

White was forced into a change before kickoff with teenager JF van Heerden replacing Ruan Nortje at No 5 due to injury, but it barely ruffled the hosts as they ran in nine tries for an empathic reply to a heavy defeat at Leinster in the Vodacom URC last week.

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"We wanted a rebound and good teams are teams that after they get a performance like we did last week you make sure you back it up with a proper performance," he said.

"Some of those tries were outstanding… and over the years people have gone from seeing the Bulls being able to scrum and maul into the kind of rugby we saw [on Saturday].

"It's obviously very pleasing to get a reaction like that, and pleasing that we can interchange the way that we play. We used the Highveld, we used the altitude and the surface we practise on as a bonus. Very happy to pull that win off."

Addressing Van Heerden's outing, White added: "Unbelievable, he's 19 years old and if you Google him he turns 20 in May. The way he got picked was literally 10 minutes before kickoff, we decided we weren't going to risk Ruan.

"He played like he was a seasoned pro but I've said it, we've got unbelievable young juniors coming through in our system … and it's credit to the program that we're running because there's not many other franchises that can boast the kind of juniors we're getting through.

"When you get a guy like [assistant coach] Andries Bekker saying, 'don't worry, let's start him, he'll be fine', it's a great boost for a head coach."

Photo: Sydney Seshibedi/Gallo Images

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